


The night around stars (never too careful)

by megyal



Category: The Avengers (2012)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-21
Updated: 2013-01-21
Packaged: 2017-11-26 08:11:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,706
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/648430
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/megyal/pseuds/megyal
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"I've learned not to underestimate you. Now I see you clearly. You're not a foul beast at all."</p>
            </blockquote>





	The night around stars (never too careful)

**Author's Note:**

> Written for [symetric](symetric.livejournal.com) at LJ! First time writing these two (or three). Implied dub-con. It's confusing to me too, so if you want to be sure, please ask me and I'll try to clarify.

When Bruce had first moved into the tower, he had been struck almost speechless at the sight of the labs. Tony had just stared at him while Bruce had hovered in the doorway, making small helpless motions with his hands. Tony had said, very crisply and clearly, "These are _your_ labs, B.B. Get used to it. Hey, wait, look at this shit I started over here." Bruce constantly told himself that there was really no such thing as permanency, not for him; but it was nice to curl up in the couch to the back of the smaller lab while waiting on an experiment, gaze up at the dark sky through that part of the ceiling which was actually a roof made of ultra-reinforced glass and call this place _home_ in his head.

So when Barton strode into Bruce's labs, he did it in a very careful way, sticking close to the entry because Tony yelled shit like, "I got this thing cooking in Bruce's labs," or "I can't hear myself think with you yammering away, Cap, I'm gonna go to Bee's for some peace and quiet. Call me when you get to the interesting parts," and everyone acted as if this was Bruce's hallowed space and he belonged there just as much as anyone else. Barton had his gaze all over the place, heavy as if he could flick switches and press buttons, and yet seeming to focus right between Bruce's eyebrows. 

"Hey, Doc," Barton said.

"Hey." Bruce straightened up from the microscope and offered Barton a small smile. Barton grinned back and hopped onto a free area of the work-space counter, legs swinging slightly. He was in his at-home clothes, loose sweatpants and a grey t-shirt, and no shoes. _His at-home clothes_ , and the weirdest thing was, Bruce had _at-home_ clothes too; he was wearing them right now. Tony had bought most of them (or Jarvis did), and had threatened to burn the ones Bruce had carried with him to the Tower. Bruce hid them in the back of his massive closet. Just in case.

"Everything okay?" Bruce asked because while he and Barton got along real fine ( _scarily well_ , Natasha said, giving Bruce a somber look because the Other Guy seemed to like Barton just as much), sometimes Barton unsettled Bruce, just a little. Like now, with the way he placed his hands at the sides of his thighs, fingers gripping the edge of the work-surface.

"Yeah," Barton said, but he sounded very quiet. Bruce turned fully towards him.

"What--"

"Notice anything different about the last few times we squared off with Loki?" Barton looked at him as if he was a target. Bruce blinked and then thought about it.

"Hmm. He seemed to pay more attention to me, I guess," Bruce said and smiled a little, self-deprecating at the thought. 

Barton nodded. "You're right. He was."

Bruce waited for the punch-line. Barton didn't continue, just kept on gazing at Bruce, who put down the pen he'd been gripping very carefully.

"He was?"

Barton smiled. He had a really nice smile, because it was such a relief from that blankness he had when he _wasn't_ smiling. This one had a wryness at the edges.

"Yeah, he was. He's been focused on you." Barton's smile faltered for a moment, and then regained strength. "I know what he's like when he's focused."

"He couldn't have been--"

"He was." Barton leaped lightly off the counter, toes flexing for a moment before he walked off. "Be careful, Bee. When he's got his mind on something, it's fun for him and a fuckeroo for everyone else."

"I'll try," Bruce said in the direction of the door, but it was already sliding shut behind Barton, and he was talking to himself. "Well. _He'll_ try, but we all know how that works."

He wasn't really talking to himself, anyway. Because he was Bruce Banner, and for good or bad, he was never alone.

+

 _Be careful_.

Hulk didn't like having that soft voice in the back of his head, but Hulk had been living with it for as long as forever, so it was okay. 

_Just be careful_.

Hulk doesn't care about careful. Hulk doesn't care about many things, except Betty and Tin Man and Sharp-Eyes and sometimes Red-White-Blue, and Thunderbolt is always fun, _always fun_ , and even though Hulk doesn't like the way the Shadow-Woman looks at Hulk, Hulk will keep her safe.

Hulk doesn't care about _many_ things, then. Bruce cares and is weak. Bruce _loves_ them and so Hulk has to be strong to protect their hearts. Hulk is always strong. See? Hulk smashed that column and nearly all of the drooling squiggle-cats were crushed. Easy. Easy-fucking-peasy, like Sharp-Eyes always said.

"Hello, you beast," someone murmured and Hulk whirled around, snarling into the thick air of the underground parking lot. Hulk stopped, staring at the slender man with the black hair and eyes almost as green as Hulk's tough skin. Hulk felt his upper lip curl into a sneer. Hulk had smashed this one before. Smashed him _good_.

"Look at you," the Troublemaker said, his eyes glittering. Before, he had gazed on Hulk with contempt and disgust. Hulk knew what those words were. Hulk knew what they meant. Hulk had wanted to tear that expression out of his face, but Bruce had held Hulk back, like Bruce _always_ did. Hulk hated Bruce's control, especially at the good smashy parts like that.

"I've learned not to underestimate you," the Troublemaker said, his clothing wrapped around him like night around the stars. Hulk liked stars. They were pretty, and far away, and he could never hurt them. "Now I see you clearly. You're not a foul beast at all."

Hulk growled at him, and advanced. The Troublemaker didn't move. _Be careful, be careful_.

The Troublemaker smiled at Hulk, and he changed. His face softened, his body shortened and filled out at the chest and hips. He became Betty, and Hulk halted his quickening charge so abruptly that Hulk's big feet skidded on the concrete, rucking up stones. Betty gazed up as Hulk loomed over her, her lips parted, eyes shining green.

Betty's eyes weren't green.

"I can give you her, like this," Betty said, reaching up with her delicate hand, going on tip-toe to stroke Hulk's jaw. "The blood of the giants run in my veins. I can take everything you give me, like this."

"No." Hulk reared back. Green eyes or not, he could never--not even if he wanted to, and he did but--

One of Betty's dark eyebrows twitched. "Oh? Or maybe I should appeal to your vanity?" 

Betty left, and Bruce stood in her place. Bruce, with his small hands and feet, and his small smile, and Bruce's eyes weren't green either.

"Stop," Hulk said, fists clenched. "Stop!" Hulk beat the fists against Hulk's own head, roaring in anger. Bruce was in there, trying to say something, but Hulk didn't want to hear, Hulk didn't want to hear _ANYTHING_!

"Shh. Why do you hurt yourself so?" Cold hands took hold of Hulk's wrists, fearlessly. The Troublemaker was strong, because he pulled down Hulk's hands. Not as strong as Hulk, though. Hulk could break out of his hold easy-fucking-peasy, but his hands were so cool against Hulk's hot skin. Felt nice. Hulk stared down at the Troublemaker's narrow face and bright eyes.

"Don't hurt yourself," the Troublemaker said, and pressed against Hulk. The Troublemaker had a smile like Bruce, like Betty. "You can hurt _me_."

+

Bruce sat at the foot of a small hillock of rubble, staring at a nearby wall. He fought himself for control, because he had memories of a lean body that didn't seem to sweat, icy fingers clawing at his chest and thrusting mercilessly into tight, clenching heat, even though he had told Hulk to _be careful_.

Oh god. Oh god, Hulk, what did you _do_.

_Hulk do what Bruce couldn't do. Hulk always do what Bruce can't do._

Bruce bit the inside of his lip and closed his eyes. Green eyes half-lidded with pleasure and parted lips assaulted the vision of his memory. Bruce trembled.

"Hey, buddy," Tony said from his left and Bruce flinched. He calmed his breathing and opened his eyes. The face-plate of the Iron Man suit was tilted up, and Tony had a very careful expression on his face. Bruce hoped that he hadn't managed to see any of what had happened between Hulk and Loki, _fucking down here_ while the rest of them had been up on the street-level struggling with Loki's newest set of minions, but this was Tony Stark. He saw things no-one ever wanted him to see, and missed everything else.

...that wasn't a very nice thought. Bruce wasn't feeling particularly nice at the moment.

"Got you covered," Tony said and tossed neatly folded pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt at Bruce, who fumbled a little at catching the bundle (always awkward at the best of times, even more so after his body became his own again). He got to his feet, slowly and pulled on the clothing. He couldn't look in Tony's direction.

"Hey," Tony said and when Bruce finally gathered enough courage to look him in the eye, Tony's gaze was very direct, very piercing, and...and concerned. "You okay?"

Not even close, Bruce thought to himself, but that was not Tony's problem. 

_We leave,_ Hulk thought. _We leave like we always do. Hulk take care of everything, like always_.

No, Bruce thought, directing this inwards with such cold ferocity that the Hulk part of himself seemed taken aback. _No. Bruce does what Hulk can't_.

"I'm not okay," Bruce said out loud, because Tony's eyebrows had been on the verge of tectonic interaction with each other. "I don't want to talk about it here. At...at home. In the labs."

Tony stared at him, and then gave him a smile that seemed oddly relieved. "Sure, Bee. At home. In your lab, that's fine. Totally cool by me."

 _Be careful_ , Hulk huffed as Bruce trudged behind Tony back to the surface. _Don't get close to them_.

 _Too late,_ Bruce thought and squinted at the sudden strength of the afternoon sun. _Already am_.


End file.
